PETALING JAYA – Next month’s 2026 World Cup qualifying match between Harimau Malaya and Oman may move to another venue if the Football Association of Malaysia (FAM) is not satisfied with the condition of the pitch at the Bukit Jalil National Stadium.
FAM president Datuk Hamidin Mohd Amin said that he and his team will visit the Bukit Jalil stadium in early March to determine if the pitch is a good condition to play on, citing that on Saturday, British pop star Ed Sheeran held a concert as part of his “+-=÷x” (The Mathematics) Asia Tour to a crowd of 50,000.
“I have informed Datuk Hans Isaac (Malaysia Stadium Corp chairman) that my team and I will visit the stadium to check on the pitch in early March.
“We will check the condition of the pitch and if it is not in good order, we will have to decide on moving the Oman game to a different venue.
“The option is to have the match at the Sultan Ibrahim Stadium in Johor but I have not received feedback from the Regent of Johor Tunku Ismail Sultan Ibrahim on the matter.
“The other option is the Sultan Mizan Zainal Abidin Stadium in Terengganu because these stadiums have the best pitch.
“We need to do this because national head coach Kim Pan-gon demands the game to be played on a good quality pitch,” Hamidin told reporters today
On Saturday, through a statement, the Stadium Corp said that they are working with sport surface testing and consulting firm Labosport to prepare the National Stadium’s pitch for the concert and the game against Oman.
It is understood that about 1,900 square metres of grass that were moved will be given intensive care, watering and fertilisers so that the health of the grass is at an optimum level. – February 26, 2024